Intro to French Revolution

France Before 1789: Social Structure 

three estates

what were the the three estates

clergy, nobility, third estate

the third estate made up

97% of the population

before the french revolution there was an

unequal tax burden

Economic Conditions 

• Heavy War Debt 

• Costly Support of American Revolution 

• Poor harvest- bread shortage 

• Rising food prices 

Heavy

War Debt 

Costly Support of

American Revolution 

Poor harvest-

bread shortage 

Rising

food prices 

Political Conditions 

Absolute monarchy 

King Lous XVI 

No political voice for citizens 

Estate general (advisory Assesmbly rarely meet) 

 

Absolute 

 monarchy  - King Lous XVI 

No political 

voice for citizens 

Estate general

(advisory Assesmbly rarely meet)  - first two estates team up on third estate

Enlightenment Ideas 

 

  Equality before the law 

  Popular sovereignty 

  Natural rights 

  Influenced by American Revolution 

  Equality

before the law 

Popular

sovereignty 

  Natural

rights 

  Influenced by

American Revolution 

Tax crisis

1770s -1780s

financial reforms were rejected

1787

louis XVI met the estates general to raise taxes

1789 May

3rd estate declared as assembly of the nation

1789 June

People of Paris attacked the Bastille

1789 July

Nobles renounced feudal rights

1789 august 4th

Assembly issues declaration of the Rights of Man

1789 august 27th

Constitutional monarchy with separation of powers and universal male sufrage

1791 September

Tennis court oath was

in June 1789

The civil constitution of the clergy happened

July 1990

When did Louis and Marie Antoinette Escape

June 1791

Reign of Terror Happened

1792 - 1794

When was the monarchy abolished

1792 September

When was Louis Excecuted

January 1793

Convention Declared War on Britain in

February 1793

Reign of Terror ends in

July 1794

Reign of Terror included

Abolishment of Monarch, Execution, War on britian

Directory Phase

1795-1799

National Assembly Phase

1789 - 1791

Rise of Napoleon

1795 September

New Constitution Adopted

July 1789

Napoleonic Era

1799 - 1815

Major Turning Points 

•   Storming of the Bastille 

•   Declaration of the Rights of Man 

•   Execution of Louis XVI 

•  Reign of Terror 

•  Rise of Napoleon 

Why Did the Revolution Become More Radical? 

• Foreign threats 

• Internal rebellion 

• Economic instability 

• Fear of counterrevolution 

 

Foreign  

threats

Internal  

rebellion

Economic  

instability

Fear of  

counterrevolution

American Revolution: 

•   Taxation without representation 

•   Enlightenment ideas 

•   British control and economic restrictions 

French Revolution: 

• Economic crisis and debt 

•   Social inequality (Estates system) 

•   Absolutism and Enlightenment ideas 

 

Before 1789, France was ruled by an absolute monarchy. Society was divided into Three Estates: 

• First Estate: Clergy 

• Second Estate: Nobility 

• Third Estate: Common people (bourgeoisie, workers, peasants) 

The Third Estate paid most of the taxes but had very few rights…

 

Hunger, inequality, and Enlightenment ideas led to the French Revolution. 

What Is the "Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen"? 

Written by the National Assembly 

• Adopted on August 26, 1789 

• Inspired by Enlightenment philosophers like John Locke, Rousseau, and Montesquieu 

• Influenced by the American Declaration of Independence 

• It stated that rights belong to all people, not kings. 

 

The Declaration announced that all men are

born free and equal in right

Key rights included: 

• Liberty - freedom of speech, thought, and religion 

• Equality before the law - no privileges for nobles or clergy 

• Property - protection of private ownership 

• Security - protection from arbitrary arrest 

• Resistance to oppression - people can oppose unjust rule 

Liberty -

freedom of speech, thought, and religion 

Equality before the law -

no privileges for nobles or clergy 

Property -

protection of private ownership 

Security -

protection from arbitrary arrest 

Resistance to oppression -

people can oppose unjust rule 

Key Principes 

popular sovereignty, rule of law, freedom of expression, fair taxation

Popular sovereignty

Power comes from the people, not the king 

Rule of law:

Everyone is subject to the same laws 

 

Freedom of expression: 

People can speak and publish freely 

Fair taxation: 

Taxes should be shared equally 

Simple Summary 

• The Declaration of the Rights of Man: 

• Challenged inequality 

• Promoted freedom and equality 

• Shifted power from the king to the people 

• Changed how governments view human rights forever 

The term "man" mainly applied

to men, not women 

Women, slaves, and the poor were

excluded 

This led figures like 

Olympe de Gouges to write

The Declaration of the Rights of Woman 

So, the Declaration was

revolutionary but incomplete. 

Declaration Ended the

Ended the idea of absolute monarchy 

The declaration Became the

foundation of modern human rights 

The declaration Influenced

later constitutions in 

Europe and the world 

The declaration is Still

part of French law 

today